Media Outlets Seek Sanctions on OpenAI Over Copyright Dispute
In a significant legal move, The New York Times, the Daily News, and other media entities are asking a federal judge to impose sanctions on OpenAI. The conflict centers around copyright issues in the realm of artificial intelligence, with implications that could greatly affect the future of the news industry.
The core of the dispute involves accusations against OpenAI and its partner, Microsoft, who are alleged to have built AI technologies using vast numbers of news articles without proper authorization. This has raised questions about whether AI chatbots are competing unfairly with traditional news sources by attracting web traffic without engaging in the actual journalistic process.
A legal filing in a Manhattan federal court suggests that OpenAI has been obstructive, refusing to release datasets and ChatGPT logs that might demonstrate the use of copyrighted news content. The plaintiffs have accused OpenAI of “discovery misconduct,” claiming that a deposition from an OpenAI employee conflicts with the company’s previous statements.
Steven Lieberman, representing the Daily News and other plaintiffs, criticized OpenAI for allegedly “making misrepresentations” about its capabilities regarding copyrighted content in its AI training datasets. He stated, “This motion asks the court to punish OpenAI for hiding and destroying evidence showing how ChatGPT was trained on stolen journalism.”
OpenAI defends its position by citing user privacy concerns as a reason for its reluctance to share ChatGPT logs. Drew Pusateri, an OpenAI spokesperson, remarked, “As the Times’ case weakens and they’ve been forced to drop claims against us, they’re persisting with their efforts to invade the privacy of people who have nothing to do with this case, including by making these blatantly false allegations.”
The New York Times initiated legal action against OpenAI and Microsoft in late 2023, a year after the launch of ChatGPT. This AI innovation marked a significant shift in how individuals search for information online. The threat to traditional news outlets became more pronounced with Google’s introduction of AI-generated summaries in 2024, impacting advertising revenue linked to original content sources.
Joining the Times in this legal battle are other organizations such as the Daily News, Chicago Tribune, Ziff Davis, and the Center for Investigative Reporting.
Tech companies, including OpenAI, argue that training AI systems using digitized books, online articles, and other internet writings falls under “fair use” as per U.S. copyright law. This theory is being tested across numerous lawsuits involving various creative industries, though outcomes have varied.
In a notable copyright settlement, OpenAI’s competitor Anthropic agreed to pay $1.5 billion to book authors for using their pirated works to train the chatbot Claude, contrasting with its substantial $965 billion market valuation.
The New York Times’ legal approach differs from that of book authors, focusing on the unfair competition from companies leveraging its journalism to create competing products without authorization or compensation. The Times has invested over $28 million in legal battles against AI firms, including another case against Perplexity AI.
The growing legal expenses come amidst a trend where media organizations are entering licensing agreements with AI companies like Google and Meta. These deals often involve fees for training AI systems on news feeds. The Associated Press was among the first to secure such an arrangement with OpenAI in 2023, as reported here.
